DISABLED students are about to launch a new corner shop in Oxford which they have helped build themselves.

Young adults at Oxford and Cherwell Valley College will also run the new store – called Tienda, Spanish for shop – which will sell a range of essential items to students.

School staff hope the scheme will give the students “priceless” work experience before they move on to the adult world.

Project manager Lexie James-Priday said students were looking forward to the launch on Friday.

She said: “The students have helped build the store and will run it with my guidance.

“It will function as a professional profit making business with the ultimate benefit of giving our disabled students priceless work experience prior to them leaving college.

“It’s hard enough for young people to find work these days but throw a disability into the mix with a lack of work experience and life can be a real struggle.” Ms James-Priday said a Government white paper aimed at helping disabled young people was one of the factors behind the shop.

She said: “The paper was released in 2009 and was called Valuing People Now.

“It has been a huge driving force behind this social enterprise as we are very passionate about the work we do and the paths that our students choose to take.”

The shop, based at the college’s Oxpens Road campus in Oxford, will offer newspapers, convenience items such as tea and coffee and stationery cards among its produce.

Builders have been in to fit out the shop and it will open at 10.30am.

Student Nafissa Afsar is part of the team working on the new shop.

She said: “I hope to be a businesswoman one day and have really enjoyed putting the shop together. I hope that lots of people will visit us and help Tienda to do well.

“We work well together and fingers crossed the college and the public will like what we have done.”

Valuing People Now is a Government scheme for people with learning disabilities.

It aims to give disabled people the same opportunities and responsibilities as everyone else, and the right to be treated with the same dignity and respect.

dhearn@oxfordmail.co.uk